To Know and Be Known
I was sorting through papers on my desk today, feeling insignificant, as most of it was junk mail addressed to Resident. (No one lives here by that name; I wish that the post office would get that figured out.) I walked into the front room to deposit a bunch of scrap paper in the recycle bin when the UPS truck drove up. I wasn’t expecting anything so I was surprised when he headed straight for our door, carrying not one, but two boxes just for me. (Now let me just say here, that I’ve been receiving boxes of Creative Memories donations from my friends from the Yahoo Group CMC Sharelist, to help out with the families that had their homes flooded in Centralia last month.) I assumed the boxes were more scrapbooking supplies. I was thrilled to see the return address was that of my sweet sister, Nin. I couldn’t possibly imagine what would be in it, since I already received from her the surprise of a beautiful fruit basket with a chrysanthemum at Christmas time.
I opened the first one, and the box started to swell a bit as fluffy white flannel diapers escaped the confines of the box. Diapers! She sent me a box of diapers! Now I’m probably the only person in the world who gets excited over diapers, but I do. I made Boo about 2 dozen or so a year ago, and they were getting too thin and worn to use. I’ve been collecting flannel sheets and shirts to “recycle” them into Re-Bottoms for my baby boy, but needed filling for the insides. Here it was, fluffy white flannel for the middle of my custom diapers. Thanks, Nin!
The next box, to my surprise was filled with Christmas wrapped goodies. I love stretching out the holidays and I wish that our country would still actually DO the 12 days of Christmas, starting with our Lord’s birth and ending January 6th with His Epiphany, (which means Shining.) It is the day that most denominations celebrate the Baptism of Jesus, the time when he entered formal ministry. We celebrate these days in our family, but the tradition of gift giving during these days is, sadly, gone for the most part.
I read the words from my dear sister in her brief letter and was filled with longing and joy. We live so far away and I truly miss all the celebrating that a large family enjoys. Because my extended family was (and still is) scattered, each time we gathered it would be a celebration, a feast time, not only of food, but also of fellowship, laughter, tears at times, and heartfelt memories always.
The box from Nin contained a bag of gifts for each of our children and a bag for Bear and me. I opened my gifts in the solitude of naptime and relished each one; handmade washcloths, a cheery kitchen scrubby, a candle, my favorite hand soap from Bath and Body Works, a Blank Book!! I absolutely love them! A scarf, I lost mine, how did she know? And the best thing, a beautiful plaque with a hand stitched verse that says, “All because two hearts fell in love.”
My dear Sister and Mom came to help me unpack my home and settle in when we first moved here. My Bear was still deployed. They were both such a help to me that I couldn’t have done it without them. I have always admired the way my sister could arrange a bunch of seemingly unrelated objects on a wall and make it look so “put together.” She arranged my family photos and helped “re-frame” some of them so they would work together, I love that wall arrangement and I often show visitors our family pictures, pointing out beloved sisters and brothers. Today I rearranged things just a bit, to add the new plaque to the collection, on the wall. It adds so much to the whole arrangement and could be the life verse for many families. I absolutely love it!
It is amazing to me that Nin, though she lives nearly 800 miles away, knows just what I would like, she knows what my children are into, and she thinks enough of me to send us a box filled with goodies picked out just for us.
It is also awe inspiring to think that our Savior Jesus Christ knows what is best for us, cares about the trivial things in our lives and willingly gave His life for us on the cruel cross so that we could spend quality time with Him in eternity, fellowshipping, praising Him and enjoying His presence.
It is gratifying to be known in such a personal way; where there are no secrets, only intimate fellowship with The Savior, Provider God, the Alpha and Omega, our Living Lord.
I opened the first one, and the box started to swell a bit as fluffy white flannel diapers escaped the confines of the box. Diapers! She sent me a box of diapers! Now I’m probably the only person in the world who gets excited over diapers, but I do. I made Boo about 2 dozen or so a year ago, and they were getting too thin and worn to use. I’ve been collecting flannel sheets and shirts to “recycle” them into Re-Bottoms for my baby boy, but needed filling for the insides. Here it was, fluffy white flannel for the middle of my custom diapers. Thanks, Nin!
The next box, to my surprise was filled with Christmas wrapped goodies. I love stretching out the holidays and I wish that our country would still actually DO the 12 days of Christmas, starting with our Lord’s birth and ending January 6th with His Epiphany, (which means Shining.) It is the day that most denominations celebrate the Baptism of Jesus, the time when he entered formal ministry. We celebrate these days in our family, but the tradition of gift giving during these days is, sadly, gone for the most part.
I read the words from my dear sister in her brief letter and was filled with longing and joy. We live so far away and I truly miss all the celebrating that a large family enjoys. Because my extended family was (and still is) scattered, each time we gathered it would be a celebration, a feast time, not only of food, but also of fellowship, laughter, tears at times, and heartfelt memories always.
The box from Nin contained a bag of gifts for each of our children and a bag for Bear and me. I opened my gifts in the solitude of naptime and relished each one; handmade washcloths, a cheery kitchen scrubby, a candle, my favorite hand soap from Bath and Body Works, a Blank Book!! I absolutely love them! A scarf, I lost mine, how did she know? And the best thing, a beautiful plaque with a hand stitched verse that says, “All because two hearts fell in love.”
My dear Sister and Mom came to help me unpack my home and settle in when we first moved here. My Bear was still deployed. They were both such a help to me that I couldn’t have done it without them. I have always admired the way my sister could arrange a bunch of seemingly unrelated objects on a wall and make it look so “put together.” She arranged my family photos and helped “re-frame” some of them so they would work together, I love that wall arrangement and I often show visitors our family pictures, pointing out beloved sisters and brothers. Today I rearranged things just a bit, to add the new plaque to the collection, on the wall. It adds so much to the whole arrangement and could be the life verse for many families. I absolutely love it!
It is amazing to me that Nin, though she lives nearly 800 miles away, knows just what I would like, she knows what my children are into, and she thinks enough of me to send us a box filled with goodies picked out just for us.
It is also awe inspiring to think that our Savior Jesus Christ knows what is best for us, cares about the trivial things in our lives and willingly gave His life for us on the cruel cross so that we could spend quality time with Him in eternity, fellowshipping, praising Him and enjoying His presence.
It is gratifying to be known in such a personal way; where there are no secrets, only intimate fellowship with The Savior, Provider God, the Alpha and Omega, our Living Lord.
Comments
Hugs,
Sue
Laura
God does know your every need!